Victor gave her an amused expression. He knew the celebrity long enough to understand that she was merely acting out like a child. It was a way of expressing herself. If Victor let her brood for some time, she would return to normal. "Carol is an agent of the Blackwells now. I must keep a tab on her, or she might get into trouble."Haley sighed. "Fine. Carol has launched a new brand called Venus Skincare. She wants to hire me as the brand ambassador."Victor scratched his chin. "What was your answer?""Well, I wanted to turn her down point-blank to avoid being associated with the Blackwells. That rotten prince Damien has been stalking me for years, which really creeps me out. He would use the contract as an excuse to come closer, which I definitely want to evade. But then, I want to help Carol since it would please you."Victor nodded. "You didn't tell me yet. What was your answer?"Haley pursed her lips. "I…" she said reluctantly. "I can't tell you myself. You'll know soon."The man
"Slicy Kyle, they call him," Dave continued. "I met the guy once, and he's scary as hell! He wields a black machete as a weapon. Kyle wouldn't think twice before maiming or killing anybody. It is wise not to mess with him.""I'm not worried about a two-time kid playing with knives," Victor replied with disinterest. During the Pacific World War, he humbled legendary warriors. Recently, he killed Titus Chrome within seconds of sparring. Insignificant idiots like Kyle were more like a nuisance to society, insects to be swatted.Dave shook his head. "You don't understand, Victor. His elder brother is Edward Shannon, one of the wealthiest billionaires of Springfield. I heard Edward is associated with the Triumvirate now, which doubled his influence. Therefore, Kyle has become invincible. He established a real estate agency in this tough business environment and succeeded. He has also started a models' agency; from what I heard, he signed Julia Cameron, the Tristar Entertainment actress." V
"Come this way," Daphne said, ushering Julia into a newly renovated building. The interior was well-furnished and glowed glamorously with modern lighting. Professional staff in uniform rushed about, busy with their jobs. A long queue of models stood before the registration desk, eagerly waiting for their turns. Everyone wanted to be represented by Kyle Shannon's agency. The Shannon name was gold in Springfield."Wow!" Julia exclaimed. "I can't believe you recruited me directly with no interview or reference. I am grateful.""Don't mention it, girl," Daphne said with a smirk. She quickly filled out a form at the registration desk and asked Julia to sign. "You can pay me back the registration fee later."Julia winced after signing the form. "Oh! I almost forgot! I'm afraid I don't have any money to pay you! In fact, I can barely make rent this month!"Daphne frowned but rejoiced on the inside. The young, helpless beauty could be exploited in other ways. "Well… I have an idea. You can cle
On the topmost floor of the models' agency, a young man relaxed on a recliner lounge with his eyes closed. He was wearing no pants, and before him knelt Daphne. She was topless, and her head bobbed up and down over the young man's crotch."Yeah… That's it, baby…" Kyle groaned. "You are pretty good at this…"Daphne raised her head and looked at him seductively. Her lips were wet and drooling over. "Anything for you, Mr. Shannon… You deserved some pleasure after your brilliant ideas came to fruition."The young man opened his eyes and nodded at her. He loved flattery. "Yep. I didn't expect Dave to make a million dollars commission. He was a poor guy who barely got any real estate deals for the company. It was shocking how he landed the Prince County Villa deal with Ribald Corp! Before releasing the news, I asked Bob Ogden to fudge the records and deprive Dave of the commissions. The files show Bob was the agent. I kept most of the money, though. Pretty smart, right?" He chuckled in self
The young man picked up the call with irritation."Bob! I'm busy!" he barked into the phone. The last thing he needed at the moment was to talk to a fat, ugly man."I'm sorry, sir!" Bob replied in a panic. "But you are needed in the office! A stranger is here about Dave's commission! He beat up my guards and is asking for you! It's an emergency, sir!"Anger flashed across Kyle's face. He hated being interrupted during sex. Who was this stranger with a death wish? The angry young man pulled out of Daphne and asked her to get dressed. "Have you ever watched an actual fight to the death?" he asked her, his eyes gleaming. The aura about him had changed from casual to grave. It sent shivers up Daphne's spine.The beauty wriggled uncomfortably. "I… No… I haven't…"Kyle picked up his sheathed machete and fixed it in his belt. "Come with me if you want to see a murder in broad daylight. First, let me place a quick call to my brother…"***"Please…!" Bob Ogden begged on his knees. "Don't kill
Who was this stranger? How did he butcher all his experienced soldiers? Was he a gang leader? Even Joe Savage wasn't capable of such carnage."Are you mute?" Kyle taunted. "In that case, let's settle this with a fight!"Kyle slid his machete out of its sheath. The dark blade glistened in the light eerily. The young man licked his lips and rushed at Victor. However, all his instincts told him to stay away. Or something terrible would happen. He felt as if he was moments away from death!"Nooo!" A distressed voice from the doorway stopped him in his tracks. The voice was familiar to Kyle."Bro!" he exclaimed. Edward Shannon, the Chairman of Shannon Inc., walked in with a huff. It appeared he had run up the stairs instead of waiting for the elevator. "Kyle…""Bro! Don't come in between! This guy killed my gang members and trashed my place! I must kill him here!"A thick vein throbbed on Edward's forehead. "You fucking idiot! Do you want to die so much? Have I trained you all these years
Julia was ecstatic. She freshened up in the adjoining washroom, preparing for the interview. The beauty was excited to face her first producer and wanted to make an excellent first impression. Now that she was going to be a professional actress, she couldn't miss a single opportunity for growth. Julia began weaving webs of wonder. It would start with ads and endorsements, then movies, and maybe one day, she'll be at the Academy Awards!'Daphne is such a darling,' she thought, returning to earth. 'Not only did she invite me to her modeling agency without an interview, but she's also introducing me to a producer. If only there were more people like her, the world would be a better place to live in.'Julia used to think that the industry was terrible with exploitative practices. But after meeting Daphne, her opinion changed. Finally, after the ad deal with the producer, she would have enough money to clear her debts and bring some luxury to her parents.Julia waited for half an hour with
Julia furrowed her brows. A nude scene? She definitely didn't want to do that. But some of her model friends had done local ads. They said naked scenes were shot professionally with only essential staff present. Besides, ads were for the general audience. Therefore, they were censored, even though the model posed nude. They'll likely show her back, waist, and thighs in close-ups. Julia pursed her lips. "As long as there is no explicit exposure and we have censorship, I am prepared for it."Gerald grinned from ear to ear. It was as if Christmas had arrived early for him. Two of his teeth were gold crowns, while others were dark from smoking. "Great," he said, looking pleased. "I will give you a million dollars for the ad."Julia couldn't believe her ears. "Wow! Really?!" With a million dollars, she could pay for her parents' health insurance and set them up in a new home with much to spare."Are you a virgin, honey?" Gerald asked out of the blue. The beauty turned to him suddenly and
Victor checked the time on his Cartier watch. It was a Valentine's gift from Eva. He wondered what she'd be doing right now—probably still awake, waiting for her lover. Even though the duo were intimate just a few hours ago, he already missed her warm, slender body., and her naughty smile.Victor had spent all night hunting down criminals—drug peddlers, child traffickers, rapists, and burglars. They were petty offenders but still made Springfield unsafe. He would be back home already if he hadn't followed Kate to the abandoned asylum."First things first, Raven," Victor began. "Why did you call me a monster? What was that uncalled-for outburst all about?"Kate crossed her arms and gave him a quizzical look. Did Roadkill seriously not know? Was the psychopath clueless about his own murderous tendencies?"I will not fall for that," she replied defensively. "You're trying to find whether I have gathered any evidence to incriminate your brutalities. Once you know everything, it will be co
Kate's grip loosened a bit on her knives. Did the stranger say he was Roadkill? Why was the name so familiar? A moment's reflection brought back her doubts and anxiety.Of course! The poster vigilante, Roadkill! He was so popular among the youth that cosplayers dressed up as him in comic-con. Teen girls loved him so much they got the tattoo 'R' over objectionable parts of their bodies. There were steaks and drinks named after him!Kate ground her teeth in disgust. The Raven used to be Springfield citizens' poster heroine and sole protectress. That ended when Roadkill arrived. However, the female vigilante wasn't really upset that he stole the limelight from her. She was more disturbed by how he did it.Kate went through the newspaper articles, online blogs, and witness reports of cases in which Roadkill was involved. Even though the police department publicly denounced him, they made no attempts to curb his vigilante activities. On the other hand, the Raven was painted as a hobbyist a
Kate jumped from rooftop to rooftop undetected in the darkness, her beastly green eyes glowing in the night. She was light as a feather and agile like a feline. She used parkour moves, advanced gymnastics, and physical resilience to traverse buildings.Kate was trying to put some distance between herself and the crime scene she had recently visited. Less than ten minutes later, she found a group of drunkards harassing an innocent lady. The latter was returning from shopping and somehow missed the curfew time.The villainous group ambushed her in an alley and surrounded her. After robbing the lady of her belongings, they went too far. Inebriated and stoned, they attempted to tear off her clothes and rape her.Luckily, Kate heard her cries and jumped down from the building for a rescue. She offered no warning to the perpetrators. Her powerful chops, jabs, and slams floored them in a minute. The end result was that the men needed hospitalization to survive.After making an anonymous call
Clearly unsettled, Eva tried to get up from the bed. But she failed because her legs and arms were bound. The young woman had been stripped and made to wear a hospital gown.What was going on? Didn’t she lose consciousness in the restaurant? Where the hell did they bring her? Or was she asleep, having a nightmare?Eva heard a few voices talking but couldn’t recognize them.“The fresh specimen has a bun in the oven, sir…”“What? Is the woman pregnant? Now, that sounds like good news. We can have both her grey matter and her uterus. Jackpot!”Eva’s heart froze in horror. What nonsense were the strangers blabbering? Then, the realization hit her. She had been abducted!“Where am I?” Eva called out to the voices. “What’s going on here? Answer me! I am the Mayor’s executive assistant! You guys are in a lot of trouble! The military police will barge in at any moment and gun you down!”Eva heard footsteps. Moments later, three smiling faces loomed over her. “Ah, the specimen is awake,” a mid
Eva stopped eating her food and stared at the young man. He looked innocent, probably fresh out of high school, a college freshman. Was he a fan of Victor Cromwell?“How did you know it was me?” she asked apprehensively.“Please don’t be alarmed, ma’am,” he replied, joining his hands. “I am George. I am actually a big admirer of Mr. Victor Cromwell and the wonderful work he has been doing for Springfield. You’re always by his side in meetings, conferences, and photo ops. Therefore, it isn’t irregular for commoners like us to recognize you.”Eva was still unconvinced. “You are a fan of Victor’s work? Are you okay with military rule? Most of the city appears to be against it.”“Yes, of course they are against it!” George exclaimed. “Governments rise and fall all the time. Governance styles also change. Springfield is becoming a military-industrial complex, and people must get with the times.”Eva nodded, reassured that the boy was a modern arts student, an idealist. Why else would he tr
Eva Atelier stepped out of the shower, looking resplendent. She wore only a white bathrobe and smelled of lavender and honey. The beauty just had a long, warm, and luxurious shower. However, the timing could have been better since it was past midnight.Victor had gone out after an hour-long lovemaking session, leaving her yearning for a thorough cleansing. Perhaps he would return soon, and they could go at it again. She was already horny thinking about her man.Victor usually disappeared every night and returned before dawn. Eva never asked him about his whereabouts. She assumed he was meeting important people and hatching plans for Springfield's betterment. The girl equated herself with a superhero's girlfriend, never disturbing his high-stakes, clandestine nightlife.It had been a month since Eva started living with Victor at the Mayor's mansion. It was now public knowledge that the two were dating. The media picked up the news on the first day and played it until the entire city kn
Haley B stumbled out of a high-end liquor store with a vodka bottle in her hand. She was clearly inebriated. The young, beautiful celebrity had fallen off the wagon and had been drinking every day since Victor died.Haley B had postponed all her movie and concert schedules indefinitely and wasn't accepting any more offers. All she wanted to do was bury her sorrows in alcohol. When her media team tried to convince her otherwise, she fired them.At the moment, with a liquor bottle in hand, and wearing a loose hoodie and track pants, Haley was in disguise. If the paparazzi found her intoxicated, she would be on national news, and the internet would break. Not that she cared much about her celebrity status anymore.Haley looked around at the pedestrians and drunkard crowds. Nobody gave her a second look. People probably thought she was a homeless woman.Her Mercedes stood outside with a chauffeur and two guards. Haley eyed them from a distance with blurry vision. Indeed, she had had a lot
Dear Readers, Thanks for staying with the story this far. You're all awesome. I have tested your patience with slow updates and such tests will be less frequent in the future. About the story: The Invasion Arc ends with the last chapter. It will be followed by the Dark City Arc, that will introduce new characters and spring many more twists. Victor Damone is now Victor Cromwell, the legal heir of a royal family. However, escaping his past won't be as easy as he thought. Let's see how the Peerless Man deals with the upcoming dangers. Stay tuned!
Victor recognized the vigilante named Roadkill because he was, in fact, Roadkill. When he first arrived in Springfield as Victor Cromwell, he immediately noticed the societal change. People were bolder, more outspoken, and political. On the other hand, something was uncanny about the steep rise of both crime and criminals.Even after the military boosted security and restored the economy, public order continued to worsen. It meant certain forces were actively inciting crimes. Robberies, burglaries, and murders were frequent.As soon as the sun set, a hush fell over the city. People were scared to go outdoors in the dark. Anti-social elements hung out in the alleys. Drugs, smuggling, and trafficking were at an all-time high. It was dangerous for women and children to go out alone after dusk.Victor decided to take matters into his own hands. He walked the streets and alleys himself to investigate the cause of this anomaly. Since he couldn't publicly reveal his identity and face, he dis